In The News

The 1970 census counts 204,763,770 Americans and elevates California as the most populous state at 19,959,134.

Robert Maples (22) – an ex-machine gunner testifies at the court-martial of 1st lt. William Calley Jr. that he saw Calley and a GI fire into a ditch where they had “gathered up” defenseless men, woman and children. He also said that Calley, as his platoon leader, ordered him to join in the firing but, “I refused.”

French Canadian terrorists surrender kidnapped British envoy James Cross to a Cuban delegation in Montreal after holding him captive 60 days in exchange, Canada flies three terrorists and four of their relatives in asylum in Havana aboard a military plane.

Farm union leader Caesar Chevez is jailed for the first time. A Monterey County Superior Judge sentenced Chavez to jail until he calls off a lettuce boycott and strike prohibited by a previous court order.

He’s gone! - Las Vegas sheriff’s officers conduct a midnight raid on the Desert Inn penthouse, claiming they believed Howard Hughes had been kidnapped. The raid was a move influenced by Robert Maheu, fighting to remain as head of Hughes’ Las Vegas operations against the challenge of long-time officials of the Hughes Tool Co. – the Houston firm that is the keystone of Hughes’ empire. Maheu is mounting a campaign to try to establish that Hughes may no longer by physically or mentally capable of making decisions.

Leaving Las Vegas - Howard Hughes takes over a ninth-floor suite at the Britannia Beach Hotel on Paradise Island in the Bahamas. Hughes, who will be 65 late this month, is said to be in declining health.

The Transportation Department proposes that all passenger cars – beginning with 1973 models – be designed to operate no faster than 95 m.p.h. and to sound horns and flash lights when 85 m.p.h. is reached. Speedometers would not be permitted to show speeds higher than 85 m.p.h. under the proposed safety standard. The Safety Bureau said studies had indicated the fatality rate increases “markedly at speeds over 80 m.p.h., and that there is a direct relationship between the severity of injury and vehicle speed.”

Some best-selling books – December 1, 1970

Love Story – Erich Segal

Islands in the Stream – Ernest Hemingway

The Crystal Cave – Mary Stewart

Rich Man, Poor Man – Irwin Shaw

Child From The Sea – Elizabeth Goudge

God Is An Englishman – R.F. Delderfield

Secret Woman – Victoria Holt

The Sensuous Woman – “J”

Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex – David r. Reuben

Future Shock – Alvin Tofler

Body Language – Julius Fast

Papillon – Henri Charriere

Inside The Third Reich: Memoirs – Albert Speer

New from Tom Wolfe – Radical Chic & Mau-Mauing the Flak Cathers:

“Tom Wolfe introduces a new phrase to the language to describe one of the intriguing phenomena of our times: the courting of romantic radicals – Black Panthers, striking grape workers, Young Lords – by New York’s socially elite. He focuses particularly on one symbolic event: the gathering of the radically chick at Leonard Bernstein’s duplex apartment on Park Avenue to meet spokesmen of the Black Panther Party, to hear them out, and talk over ways of aiding their cause. The Beautiful People will ever be the same again.”

Sports news – December 1, 1970

Just beginning what may be a brilliant pro career, O.J. Simpson is lost to the Buffalo Bills for the rest of the season. Simpson suffered a slight tear of the capsule behind the left knee” when he was tackled while returning a kickoff during a game with Cincinnati.

The Harlem Globetrotters will make the first of several annual appearances on NBC beginning January 12. Joe Garagiola will host the special, which will feature a segment in which the Globetrotters will play the Jersey City Reds.

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Entertainment/Celebrity news – December 1, 1970

He’s king of custom cars – next time you go to Hollywood, check out George Barris’ non-descript automobile showroom on Riverside Drive. He’s done them all, including the Munster Mobile back in 1964.

Ryan O’Neal is the talk of Hollywood these days. He’s starring in a movie from the best-selling book “Love Story.” Ryan plays a wealthy social hockey player at Harvard and had to learn how to skate for the movie. O’Neal is currently shooting a new movie, “Wild Rovers” with William Holden.

Television news – December 1, 1970

Mickey Mantle is set to appear on CBS-TV’s “Hee Haw” on December 29.

Jack Barry Productions and ABC-TV join forces for a new game show pilot “The Reel Game” which utilizes headlines of the past and present.

President Nixon sends congratulations to Captain Kangaroo for providing wholesome television entertainment for children for 15 years. Nixon’s letter said Captain Kangaroo was not only a favorite of the nation’s children but also of “all discriminating parents concerned with the quality of shows their children watch.”

Dick Carson, brother of Johnny Carson, will direct 13 weeks of the Merv Griffin Show on rival CBS-TV. He once directed “The Tonight Show.”